CORONATION Street favourite Rachel Leskovac has revealed the ins and outs of her life away from Weatherfield – from her lookalike teen daughter to friendships with co-stars.
Rachel reprised her role as Natasha Blakeman just last year as she appeared in Weatherfield with son Sam, who his dad Nick Tilsley had no idea about.
Her big surprise was revealed ten years after he departed from the cobbles in 2010, but her stint in the soap could be cut short, especially after chaotic scenes during Friday evening’s drama-filled episode.
Opening up about her reason for returning to Corrie, Rachel had said at the time she was “very excited and proud” to be returning, partly due to seeing “so many old friends still there”.
Prior to her first stint in the ITV soap back in 2010, Rachel got her first big break in British drama on Where the Heart Is as Bella Scott in 2002, before brief appearances in Casualty, Doctors and Outlaws.
Soon after her Corrie exit, she followed in the footsteps of former co-star Sally Carman, appearing on Shameless as Lara Heaton in 2012.
Rachel continued to enjoy a stellar career within the industry in Happy Valley, WPC 56 and even rival soap Hollyoaks for two years.
However, outside of her acting career, Rachel is a devoted mum and often proudly shares pictures of her ‘mini-me’ teen daughter, Macy.
Sharing a heart-warming photo of them smiling in the car on Instagram, her co-star Samia Longchambon, who plays Maria Connor, replied: “Wow. She’s the double of you, Rach – both beauties.”
Rachel is evidently close to her on-screen son, too, played by young actor and rising star Jude Riordan.
Earlier this year, she shared a photo of the pair beaming as they posed on the benches outside the ITV studios and wrote: “Me and the main man Jude just chilling after a hard day at the office.”
She went on to share a picture of the pair hugging last month, adding: “Moods by me and Jude.”
Viewers were left shellshocked after Friday’s episode of Corrie ended in Natasha brutally shot in a tragic case of mistaken identity.
Sam’s mum was in the wrong place at the wrong time after she was gunned down by gang member and escaped convict on the run, Harvey Gaskell.
Coronation Street airs Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7.30pm and 8.30pm on ITV.
